Top Ten Dystopian Characters

This meme is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish and today's question asks us to share our top ten characters in any genre of our choice.  So without any further ado, here we go:

Top Ten Characters in Dystopian:

in no particular order:

1) Jonas from The Giver

2) Tris from Divergent

3) Katniss from The Hunger Games

4) Adelice from Crewel

5) Four from Divergent

6) Peeta from The Hunger Games

7) Risa from Unwind

8) Cassia from Matched

9) Cinder from The Lunar Chronicles

10) Gale from The Hunger Games

Agree or disagree?  Did I miss someone you would include?

Cupcakes and Writing: Devil's Food

Devil's Food: Writing Compelling Villains

I had to look this one up.  Why is it called Devil's Food Cake, and how is it different from a traditional chocolate cake?  Good ol' Wikipedia told me that 1) It's called Devil's Food because its color is counterpart to the white or yellow Angel Food cake and 2) It's different from chocolate cake in that it is traditionally made with cocoa, rather than chocolate, and with some shredded beets to give it a reddish, or "devilish" color.

Beets in cake, sounds weird to me. But then I thought, well, shredded carrots makes a delicious carrot cake, so what the heck.  Beets just seems like something incredibly unique to put into a cake.  And that's when I made the connection: to write a compelling villain, they need to have something incredibly unique about them too.

"I like villains because there's something so attractive about a committed person - they have a plan, an ideology, no matter how twisted. They're motivated." -Russell Crowe

Love that quote!  So, how do I make my villain unique or compelling, or in Russel Crowe's words, attractive?  I think it's different for every person, but I gave my villain the following three things:

1) A weird quirk.  My villain talks to a picture of his girlfriend as if she's really in the room with him.  "She" encourages him and also argues with him, adding a unique inner dialogue within my villain.

2) A back story.  Though short, it makes it clear that something in his past (ridicule and disbelief from peers that he was smart enough to pull something thing off) has driven him to prove them wrong and redeem himself in their eyes and in the eyes of others too.  Because of this ridicule he is disillusioned, thinking he is doing what is good for others but not being aware of how his deeds affect others.

3) He's powerful.  For my villain, his power is his intelligence.  He's ridiculously smart.  So much so that he is driven to prove his intelligence no matter the cost.  Even if it causes people to get hurt.

So there you have it.  A villain needs something unique to make them an attractive character.  They can't be all bad, there should be something human and compelling about them.

What traits do you think a compelling villain should have? 

Cupcakes and Writing: Coffee

Coffee: Plot

According to GanoCup.com, coffee has become the second most popular drink in the world (after water of course).  They state that over 400 billions cups are consumed every year, making the coffee industry valued at 80 billion dollars.  And so, it should only follow that the world’s favorite drink should be transformed into cupcake form.  Now, I’ll admit, I’ve never had a coffee flavored cupcake, but I know they exist.  And if you were to hand me one, I'd gladly try it.  I’d imagine they taste like a Starbucks—the bitter smell of coffee, sweet smell of sauces and sugars emanating from the little cakes.  

And just like I go to a Starbucks to meet a friend or get some reading or writing done, people get their coffee to help them as they scurry around crossing things off their to-do lists.  Just as a coffee lover wants/needs their caffeine to keep them going throughout their busy day, so a good story needs an intriguing plot.

Whether you're participating in NaNoWriMo this year or not (I am for the fourth time and have yet to 'win') plot is something that is foundational to any story.  My first manuscript I ever wrote was a flop simply because it was so character-driven and had very little plot.  Not that characters aren't important, but if you want your readers to care about your characters, you have to give them a story they care to sit through.  And our goal shouldn't just be that our readers sit through our book, but that they're at the edge of their seats, turning those pages, rooting for those characters, "just one more chapter" kind of sitting through our books.

I have yet to learn the secret to developing a great plot.  I've read lots of helpful books, but I'm still not there.  I'm more of a 1) get the story out there, 2) think about it a looooong time, then 3)  revise it so the plot is more suspenseful.  And repeat steps two and three a gazillion times.  

I've learned a few tricks.  Such as make sure the inciting event occurs in the first chapter.  End each chapter with a cliffhanger. Each chapter should contain some kind of conflict.  Make sure there is something at risk for the main character and that they have strong motivation.  Start strong with a great hook.  

I wish I had the secret to developing a great plot.  Just as I wish a delicious frappe would plop in front of me anytime I sit down to write or read or surf the internet.  Or that I had a coffee flavored cupcake to try.

I'll just have to settle with learning new tricks for developing a stronger story.  Just like I make my own frappachinos.  But man, those things taste amazing when you have to blend all those ingredients together yourself.  You appreciate them a little bit more.

Hey readers and writers, what do you think makes a great plot?

Writers, what tricks do you have for developing a strong, intriguing plot?

And anyone else doing NaNo this year?

Character Collages

A character never reveals all their secrets.  Or, do they?  Are there things you don't know about your characters?  Or things you know about them but aren't working into your manuscript?

I've been working on a manuscript for over a year now.  And I'll admit, I thought I knew a lot about my characters.  I'd done those character questionnaires, had conversations with them in my head, watched them grow and develop and stumble and fall as I wrote.  And they took me on a journey, revealing things about themselves as I wrote, things I never intended for them.  But I decided to take my characters to the next level.  Create a collage that represented them, since I (ahem) knew them so well.  And I realized I have a lot more to learn about my characters!

I dug out some magazines.  (Sadly, all I had was parenting magazines, but apparently, that's all I needed!)  I gathered some large index cards, some scissors and glue sticks.  And after a few hours (mind you, I was interrupted by my lil monkey several times) I had a character collage for my major characters.  Voila!

                                      

But here's the weird thing I discovered.  As I was going through magazines I would see something that would strike my fancy.  "Oh yeah, so and so would totally be into that!" and I'd start cutting and pasting.  It wasn't in the story.  Just something I realized is embedded in my character.  Maybe some of those aspects I'll work into my story.  Maybe, some of them I'll just keep between me and them.  After all, I think it's impossible to include every aspect of who they are and their past and their deepest, darkest desires and fears.  They might not even know it all themselves.  And besides, I think they do like keeping some of those things to themselves.

So how do your characters reveal themselves to you?  And are there things you know about them that aren't in your story?

Creating Cupcakes vs. Characters

Creating Cupcakes (from a box, not from scratch)	Creating Characters (from scratch, it doesn't come in a box)
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.	1) Put butt in chair, turn off all distractions.
2) Combine cake mix, oil, eggs and water. Mix together.	2) Combine character traits, goals, flaws and obstacles. Mix together.
3) Line muffin tins with cupcake liners— no more than 2/3 full.	3) Set character on course outlined—careful, they may come up with other plans.
4) Bake 45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into cupcake comes out clean.	4) Put characters through rising pressures, until they emerge a (hopefully) changed person.
5) When cooled, cover with frosting.	5) When completed, edit and revise.

Bon appetit!

Compelling Characters

Elana Johnson, Jennifer Daiker and Alex Cavanaugh have posed the question "What makes a compelling character?" I'm joining the blogfest bandwagon late, but hey, better late than never right?  Plus, I didn't want to feel left out with all these other people writing about their ideas of compelling characters. 


So, without further ado, I think compelling characters need:


1) A Unique Voice.  Every person talks different, has different phrases and words they use, etc.  I think their voices should definitely shine through.
2) Goals.  Without a goal, why do we care?  Why do we follow that character?
3) Flaws.  Nobody's perfect.  (Well, except for Jesus).  If there's a character who is without flaws I don't want to read about them.  They just don't seem lifelike and they have no way to grow--which makes for static characters.  I like those dynamic ones!
4) Persistence.  Every person meets up with obstacles and opposition.  It's how they persevere that keeps me interested.  If they give up, I give up on the book too.


It's interesting to me how, as a writer, I will have a slight idea of what my characters are like.  Then, as I'm writing, more of their character unfolds.  They reveal more of who they are, what they like and don't like, what their flaws and fears are.  I find them more and more compelling as the writing continues.  It's like they create their own compellingness (is that even a word?).  And I think that's awesome!